ASIATIC DOTTEREL. 177 



and finely bordered with, a fallo-w shade; the white part of the face 

 sprinkled with pale grey; the white markings of the edges of the 

 secondary wing feathers wanting. 



"I have met with small flocks of this Dotterel on the northern 

 coasts of Egypt and in the Gulf of Suez here and there during winter, 

 but I have no skin to prove the fact. 



''In the morasses of East Kordofan, on the lower White and on the 

 Blue Nile, on the rain-beds of the province of Irsalabat, and along 

 the shore of the Tana Lake in Abyssinia we found also red rusty- 

 necked Plovers during the months of April and May, in the most 

 splendid plumage. In the autumn young birds of the same sort which, 

 according to the descriptions of Pallas and Wagler, can neither be 

 assigned to CJiaradrius asiaticus nor to C. mongoUcus. I called the 

 species in my systematic list drawn up in Africa, CJiaradrius riificollis. 

 It belongs however to CJiaradrius damarensis, Strickland, which is 

 specifically distinguished by the shorter wings and tarsi, the white 

 colour of the outer edge of the six to ten minor wing feathers, and 

 the white axillary feathers from C. asiaticus, Pallas. I indeed received 

 this species, called by him C. asiaticus, in April at Adowa. Blanford 

 obtained it in August at Samhar and at Massowah. It lives in pairs 

 and small companies on sand-banks, on forest brooks, old dry lakes, 

 and clefts of rocks, as well as on pasture lands. It is probably a 

 resident bird in North-east Africa." 



There can be no doubt but that the bird thus described by Heuglin 

 is that of this notice. Strickland's name, it will be seen, is one of 

 the synonym es. 



By the kindness of Mr. Harting I am able to describe and figure 

 a male bird from Andersson's collection. It was shot at Knysna on 

 January 31st., 1866. This bird has the head, nape, and all the upper 

 parts of the body olive brown; primaries black; the first with the entire 

 shaft white; second with half the shaft white, as seen from above. 

 Secondaries long, extending with the primaries beyond the end of the 

 tail. Cheeks, forehead, eyebrows, sides of the face, and throat white. 

 A broad belt of rufous extends across the breast, the lowest feathers 

 of which are tipped with dark umber brown. Abdomen and under 

 tail coverts white. Tail with the outer feather on each side smoke" 

 grey, the others darker in colour as they approach the middle; axillary 

 feathers white. Wings underneath dark grey, with the primary shafts 

 white. Legs and toes of a greenish grey colour, middle and outer 

 toes partly united at base. 



There is a communication in the June number of the P.Z.S. for 

 1875, from Mr. Dresser, in which I find that that gentleman liad 



VOL. IV. 2 A 



